New Delhi: On the 10th day of his fast, Anna Hazare on Thursday refused to end his protest until Parliament begins debating on Friday three key issues related to his call for a strong anti-corruption law.
Speaking hours after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Opposition leader Sushma Swaraj urged him to call off his hunger strike, Hazare placed three conditions — inclusion of lower bureaucracy in the Lokpal bill, formation of Lokayukta in all states, and citizen’s charters in government offices.
He told the thousands gathered at the Ramlila ground that he would stop fasting if the government agreed to introduce the Jan Lokpal Bill drafted by his team Friday and initiate a debate on the three issues.
The 74-year-old said he had conveyed this to Manmohan Singh and was awaiting his response.
“I will only end my fast if the government and opposition parties discuss the three issues,” he said.
But he warned that even after ending the hunger strike, he would stay put in the sprawling Ramlila ground until parliament passed a strong anti-corruption legislation.
‘BJP solidly behind your movement’: Meanwhile, extending its full support to Anna Hazare and his cause, BJP on Thursday deplored the “changing stance” of the government on the Lokpal issue and emphasised that the Jan Lokpal Bill should form the basis for a strong and effective anti-corruption ombudsman.
In what appeared to be a step forward from its earlier position of supporting some provisions of the Jan Lokpal Bill, the BJP said it was “solidly” behind Hazare and even suggested that the legislation should be passed at the earliest without getting entangled in rules and procedures.
“My party has been and will continue to be solidly behind your movement against corruption. We have always been and are for a strong Lokpal. For that to happen, BJP accepts your draft Jan Lokpal Bill to be the basis for a strong and effective Lokpal to be put in place at the earliest without getting into procedural wrangles,” BJP President Nitin Gadkari said in his letter to Hazare.
The letter was handed over to Hazare at Ramlila grounds by a BJP delegation led by party general secretary Jagat Prakash Nadda.
Gadkari has also expressed shock over the government backing out of its promises made to Team Anna during the August 23 talks.
“I fail to understand where the things have gone wrong? Is the government not concerned about your health? Are there any internal bickerings within the government? If it is so, it is appalling,” he said.
BJP also slammed Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit for her statement on bringing the post of Chief Minister under the Lokpal ambit.
“By giving such statement, she intends to mislead Delhiites because when the Lokayukta had recommended for action against herself and her Cabinet colleague, she uttered on the floor of the House that the jurisdiction of Lokayukta should be reviewed ,” senior BJP leader Vijay Kumar Malhotra said in a statement. (Agencies)